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The bulletin of Atlanta University, 1902 no. 131

The bulletin of Atlanta University

NUMBER 131. ATLANTA, GEORGIA. NOVEMBER, 1902. Suggestions. Booker Washington has well said that the Negro should be judged at his best and not at his worst. Similarly, should not the higher education of the Negro be judged by its successes rather than by its misfits and failures? Is there any college or university in the world that would fare well if judged only by the misfits and failures among its students and graduates? Are not even our oldest institutions of learning sometimes subjected to unfair criticism in this way? Was there ever a factory that turned out a uniformly perfect product from the start? Was there ever a stockbreeder who did not continually meet with some disappointments in his efforts to raise a perfect animal? A courageous willingness to encounter some degree of failure and disappointment in any worthy field of effort is the surest pledge of ultimate success. Without this spirit, who would ever have heard of Cyrus Field, Edison, or Marconi? Joel Chandler Harris (Uncle Remus) has forcibly said that in the higher education of the Negro, " as in other things, much has to be done in order that a little may avail," and that the good resulting from its successes "will more than repay leakages and losses." Marly people are unaware how much smaller than might have been expected the leakages and losses in the higher education of the Negro have really been. Many of these who have only partially completed a college- course have still secured enough education and inspiration for better things to make them vastly more useful than they could otherwise have been. When it is ascertained, as it has been by careful investigation, that 83 per cent of the college-trained Negroes of America have found remunerative and beneficent employment in teaching and other professional work, and that, largely through their teaching and the teachers whom they have trained, the illiteracy of their race has been reduced from 100 per cent, to about 50 per cent., the higher education of the Negro can hardly be called a failure. For statement of the work of Atlanta University see last page. Grateful acknowledgment is made of a generous gift of magazines, largely bound, from Mr. J. H. Carpenter of Madison, Wisconsin; also of a Gem Food chopper for our Model Home, from the New York office of Sargent & Co. The report of the sixth Hampton Negro Conference, held July 16-18, 1902, has come to us in a pamphlet of 78 pages. It is a valuable contribution to the Negro question. One of the papers, An Effort to Improve Negro Farms in Texas, is by Hon. R. L. Smith ('80), Another, Co-operation Essential to Race Unity, is by Prof. W. S. Scarborough, Wilberforce, Ohio, once a student here. An informal athletic meet, under the auspices of the Y. M. C. A., was held upon the athletic field the afternoon of Oct. 25. There was no definite rivalry, and the competitors were not aware that a score was being kept. This was done, however, and the highest scores were as follows: By classes, M P. 17, S. P. 14, Soph. 12; by individuals, Arnold (S. P.) 13, Nichols (M. P.) 10, Butler (Soph.) 9. The foot ball team has had its first reward of diligent practice, in a victory over the team of the Atlanta Baptist College, at Brisbine Park, Nov. 15th. As was true last spring, some of our good players were disqualified by reason of low class standing. But the large majority were duly qualified, and made a good team. Their opponents also had a good team, and the contest was very close, the final score being five to zero. The number of boarding boys is so large that it has been found necessary to use for dormitory purposes the large room in South Hall which was formerly the "upper school room," and which of recent years has been used for the meetings of the Phi Kappa society, Y. M. C. A.,and similar purposes. The Y. M. C. A. goes into the former "fourth grade" room, where the Ware Lyceum has met and will continue to meet, and the Phi Kappa society is using room 8 in Stone Hall. Mention is often made in these columns of our public rhetorical exercises, which are held in Ware Chapel six times a year, and which invariably, unless the weather is very bad, draw a large crowd from the city. This was true at the excellent exercise of Nov. 7. We have never published one of the programs. That our readers may know more exactly what the exercise is, we print the program of Nov.7. Essay—"My Experience with a Bicycle," Emma Badger. Recitation—"The Revenge of Hamish," Mamie A. Coles. Essay—"My Experience as a Housekeeper," Frances S. Tropey. Recitation—" Woodcutting in a Northern Forest," Maggie D. Ford. Piano Duet—"Dance of the Minstrels," Miss Clifford and Ethel McRee. Essay—"My Life in the Atlanta Public Schools," Julia C. Howard. Recitation—"Jim," Edna E. Yates. Oration—"William Lloyd Garrison," Francis S. Alexander. Cornet Solo—"Tryphosa Waltz," Thomas B. Harper. Essay—"The Story of the Old Curiosity Shop," Emma L. Hubert. Recitation—"He Wanted to See the Old Home," Birdie I. Thomas. Oration—"The Modern Diffusion of Knowledge," Samuel A. Grant. Piano Duet—"La Balladine," Miss Clifford and Mamie A. Coles. Essay—"My Experience as a Teacher," Alda M. Johnson. Recitation—"The Banfords' Burglar Alarm," Albon L. Holsey. Oration—"Thomas Jefferson," Emanuel W. Houstoun. Chorus—"Italia." '93—Miss Georgia B. Douglass, for several years a public school teacher in this city, is now studying music in Oberlin, Ohio. '97—R. W. Gadsden is now teaching in one of the Savannah public schools, and Miss Annie M. Brown in Hot Springs, Ark. '99 - Mr. George F. Porter is now principal of a high school in Oklahoma City, O. T., a position which he won in, a competitive examination. '02—Miss J. Beatrice Whitfield is at present acting as book-keeper for the Gate City Drug Co., in this city.

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Transcript

NUMBER 131. ATLANTA, GEORGIA. NOVEMBER, 1902. Suggestions. Booker Washington has well said that the Negro should be judged at his best and not at his worst. Similarly, should not the higher education of the Negro be judged by its successes rather than by its misfits and failures? Is there any college or university in the world that would fare well if judged only by the misfits and failures among its students and graduates? Are not even our oldest institutions of learning sometimes subjected to unfair criticism in this way? Was there ever a factory that turned out a uniformly perfect product from the start? Was there ever a stockbreeder who did not continually meet with some disappointments in his efforts to raise a perfect animal? A courageous willingness to encounter some degree of failure and disappointment in any worthy field of effort is the surest pledge of ultimate success. Without this spirit, who would ever have heard of Cyrus Field, Edison, or Marconi? Joel Chandler Harris (Uncle Remus) has forcibly said that in the higher education of the Negro, " as in other things, much has to be done in order that a little may avail," and that the good resulting from its successes "will more than repay leakages and losses." Marly people are unaware how much smaller than might have been expected the leakages and losses in the higher education of the Negro have really been. Many of these who have only partially completed a college- course have still secured enough education and inspiration for better things to make them vastly more useful than they could otherwise have been. When it is ascertained, as it has been by careful investigation, that 83 per cent of the college-trained Negroes of America have found remunerative and beneficent employment in teaching and other professional work, and that, largely through their teaching and the teachers whom they have trained, the illiteracy of their race has been reduced from 100 per cent, to about 50 per cent., the higher education of the Negro can hardly be called a failure. For statement of the work of Atlanta University see last page. Grateful acknowledgment is made of a generous gift of magazines, largely bound, from Mr. J. H. Carpenter of Madison, Wisconsin; also of a Gem Food chopper for our Model Home, from the New York office of Sargent & Co. The report of the sixth Hampton Negro Conference, held July 16-18, 1902, has come to us in a pamphlet of 78 pages. It is a valuable contribution to the Negro question. One of the papers, An Effort to Improve Negro Farms in Texas, is by Hon. R. L. Smith ('80), Another, Co-operation Essential to Race Unity, is by Prof. W. S. Scarborough, Wilberforce, Ohio, once a student here. An informal athletic meet, under the auspices of the Y. M. C. A., was held upon the athletic field the afternoon of Oct. 25. There was no definite rivalry, and the competitors were not aware that a score was being kept. This was done, however, and the highest scores were as follows: By classes, M P. 17, S. P. 14, Soph. 12; by individuals, Arnold (S. P.) 13, Nichols (M. P.) 10, Butler (Soph.) 9. The foot ball team has had its first reward of diligent practice, in a victory over the team of the Atlanta Baptist College, at Brisbine Park, Nov. 15th. As was true last spring, some of our good players were disqualified by reason of low class standing. But the large majority were duly qualified, and made a good team. Their opponents also had a good team, and the contest was very close, the final score being five to zero. The number of boarding boys is so large that it has been found necessary to use for dormitory purposes the large room in South Hall which was formerly the "upper school room," and which of recent years has been used for the meetings of the Phi Kappa society, Y. M. C. A.,and similar purposes. The Y. M. C. A. goes into the former "fourth grade" room, where the Ware Lyceum has met and will continue to meet, and the Phi Kappa society is using room 8 in Stone Hall. Mention is often made in these columns of our public rhetorical exercises, which are held in Ware Chapel six times a year, and which invariably, unless the weather is very bad, draw a large crowd from the city. This was true at the excellent exercise of Nov. 7. We have never published one of the programs. That our readers may know more exactly what the exercise is, we print the program of Nov.7. Essay—"My Experience with a Bicycle," Emma Badger. Recitation—"The Revenge of Hamish," Mamie A. Coles. Essay—"My Experience as a Housekeeper," Frances S. Tropey. Recitation—" Woodcutting in a Northern Forest," Maggie D. Ford. Piano Duet—"Dance of the Minstrels," Miss Clifford and Ethel McRee. Essay—"My Life in the Atlanta Public Schools," Julia C. Howard. Recitation—"Jim," Edna E. Yates. Oration—"William Lloyd Garrison," Francis S. Alexander. Cornet Solo—"Tryphosa Waltz," Thomas B. Harper. Essay—"The Story of the Old Curiosity Shop," Emma L. Hubert. Recitation—"He Wanted to See the Old Home," Birdie I. Thomas. Oration—"The Modern Diffusion of Knowledge," Samuel A. Grant. Piano Duet—"La Balladine," Miss Clifford and Mamie A. Coles. Essay—"My Experience as a Teacher," Alda M. Johnson. Recitation—"The Banfords' Burglar Alarm," Albon L. Holsey. Oration—"Thomas Jefferson," Emanuel W. Houstoun. Chorus—"Italia." '93—Miss Georgia B. Douglass, for several years a public school teacher in this city, is now studying music in Oberlin, Ohio. '97—R. W. Gadsden is now teaching in one of the Savannah public schools, and Miss Annie M. Brown in Hot Springs, Ark. '99 - Mr. George F. Porter is now principal of a high school in Oklahoma City, O. T., a position which he won in, a competitive examination. '02—Miss J. Beatrice Whitfield is at present acting as book-keeper for the Gate City Drug Co., in this city.